THE  BATTLE  OF  GREAT  BETHEL  CHURCH 
BAILEY 


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THE  BATTLE  OP  GREAT  BETHEL  CHURCH 
By  W.H.Bailey,  Sr. 


Blue  &   Gray 
March, 1895 


tEfje  lUurarp 

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?Hmbersittp  of  Jgortf)  Carolina 


Collection  of  J^ortf)  Caroltmana 

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of  the  Class  of  1889 


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THE  BATTLE  OF  GREAT  BETHEL  CHURCH-I. 


W.  H.  Bailey,  Se.,  LL.D. 


BEFOBE  proceeding  with  a  sketch  of  this 
important — in  more  sense  than  one — 
battle,  I  wish  to  correct  one  or  two 
errors  which  occur  in  an  article  by 
Colonel  H.  C.  Graham,  in  your  November  issue, 
on  "  How  North  Carolina  Went  into  the  War." 
I  was,  when  the  war  began,  thirty  years  of  age, 
a  lawyer  by  profession,  and  then  engaged  in 
teaching  a  law  school  in  conjunction  with  my 
father,  at  the  foot  of  the  Black  Mountain,  North 
Carolina.  I  was  a  secessionist,  but  not  of  the 
ultra  school  of  Calhoun  and  Davis.  I  believed 
that  a  State  had  a  right  to  secede,  but  only  for 
such  causes  as  would  have  justified  a  revolu- 
tion in  a  consolidated  government.  This  was 
the  moral  right,  but  whenever  the  people  in 
convention,  legally  assembled,  should  have  de- 
clared that  there  existed  that  just  cause,  con- 
trary individual  opinion  must  yield,  and  alle- 
giance thereupon  became  only  due  to  the  seceding 
State.  Colonel  Graham  states  correctly  that 
the  proposition  to  call  a  convention  merely  to 
consider  secession  was  voted  down,  but  he  leaves 
the  impression  that  this  action  was  taken  before 
the  secession  of  South  Carolina.*  The  truth  of 
history  demands  that  so  important  a  result 
should  not  be  left  in  doubt.  The  fact  is,  that  a 
plebiscite  of  the  kind  stated  by  him  was  submit- 
ted to  the  voters  not  before,  but  after  the  seces- 
sion of  South  Carolina,  to  wit,  in  February, 
1861. 

I  addressed  several  assemblages  of  the  people, 
advocating  the  holding  of  that  kind  of  con- 
vention, but  the  scheme  was  voted  down  by 
several  hundred  majority.  Later  on  the  legisla- 
ture called  a  convention  peremptorily,  and  the 
ordinance  of  secession  was  passed  on  the  20th 
of  May,  1861.  Before,  however,  this  ordinance 
was  enacted,  Governor  Ellis  had  called  for  vol- 
unteers, and  the  1st  North  Carolina  Begiment 
was  formed  early  in  May,  1861.  It  was  com- 
posed originally,  at  Raleigh,  North  Carolina,  of 
ten  companies : 

Company  A — Edgecombe  Guards,  Captain  Bridgers. 
Company  B — Hornet's  Nest  Riflemen,  Captain  Williams. 
Company  C — Charlotte  Grays,  Captain  Ross. 
Company  D — Orange  Guards,  Captain  Ashe. 
Company  E — Buncombe  Riflemen,  Captain  McDowell. 
Company  F — Lafayptte  Light  Infantry,  Captain  Starr. 
Company  G — Burke  Rifles,  Captain  Avery. 
Company  H — Independent  Light  Infantry,  Capt.  Huske. 


Company   I — Enfield  Rifles,  Captain  Parker. 
Company  K — Lincoln  Stars,  Captain  Hoke. 

Colonel  Graham  has  stated  the  names  of  the 
field  officers  correctly.  I  name  the  companies 
from  recollection,  and  may  not  be  perfectly  ac- 
curate. It  may  not  be  uninteresting  to  note  the 
fate  of  these  captains.  Bridgers  became  a  colo- 
nel, and  is  dead ;  Williams  is  alive  ;  Boss  (cap- 
tain of  what  were  called  the  Spring  Chickens, 
and  himself  one)  was  killed  in  battle;  Ashe 
lives  in  California  ;  McDowell  became  a  colonel ; 
Starr  became  a  colonel ;  Avery  became  a  colonel, 
and  was  killed  in  battle  ;  Huske  is  dead  ;  Parker 
became  a  colonel,  and  was  killed  in  battle ; 
Hoke  became  a  colonel,  and  was  killed  in 
battle.  Many  of  the  lieutenants  and  non-com- 
missioned officers  rose  to  high  rank  during  the 
progress  of  the  war.  Lieutenant  Lewis,  of 
Company  A,  became  a  general ;  Saunders  and 
Mallett,  of  Company  D,  became  colonels  ;  Lieu- 
tenant Gregory,  of  Company  E,  became  a  major ; 
Lieutenant  B.  F.  Hoke,  of  Company  K,  became, 
I  believe,  a  lieutenant-general.  In  Company  E, 
Sergeants  Young  and  Patton  became  majors, 
and  Private  Fleming  a  colonel.  Colonel  Gra- 
ham is  entirely  mistaken  in  stating  that  there 
was  a  Warren  company  in  the  regiment — the 
more  our  loss,  as  Warren  contains  the  crime  de 
la  crime  of  North  Carolina  aristocracy.  The 
companies  came  from  the  counties  of  Edge- 
combe, Mecklenburg,  Orange,  Buncombe,  Cum- 
berland, Burke,  Halifax,-  and  Lincoln.  Either 
before  we  started  or  after  reaching  Yorktown 
two  other  companies  were  added — one  from 
Halifax  and  the  other  from  Perquimans. 

At  Yorktown  General  J.  B.  Magruder  com- 
manded, as  he  did  at  the  battle  of  Great  Bethel 
Church.  In,  as  I  recall  the  9th  of  June,  1861, 
our  regiment,  a  company  of  artillery,  called  the 
Bichmond  Howitzers,  and  a  Virginia  company 
of  cavalry  were  marched  to  Great  Bethel 
Church.  There  were  two  Bethel  churches,  not 
far  apart — Great  Bethel  and  Little  Bethel.  On 
arriving  we  were  set  to  work  throwing  up 
breastworks. 

The  church  was  a  wooden  structure  situated 
in  a  grove  of  large  holly  and  hickory  trees  on  a 
very  slight  acclivity.  Here  is  a  rough  diagram 
presenting  a  view  of  the  situation  as  seen  on  the 
10th  of  June,  1861  : 


153 


154 


"BLUE    <AND    GRAY. 


I  I  I     I   I     E 

Fx 


Fz 


A — The  church.  D — The  howitzers. 

B — The  blacksmith  shop.  E — Our  regiment. 

C — The  cavalry.  F — Breastworks. 

G — The  direction  of  the  attack. 

The  breastworks  F2  and  F3  were  little,  if  any, 
higher  than  a  man's  knee.  F4  jvas  to  the 
breast,  and  Fl — the  point  of  attack — about  a 
yard  high.  The  battle  commenced  at  nine 
o'clock  a.  m.  on  a  bright  morning — June  10th. 
General  Hill  stated  in  his  report  that  it  lasted 
five  and  a  half  hours.  My  impression  is  that  it 
ended  about  noon.  I  apprehend  that  our  force, 
all  told,  did  not  exceed  thh-teen,  possibly  four- 
teen hundred.  General — then  Colonel — Hill,  in 
his  report  (Rise  and  Fall  of  the  Confederate 
Government,  Volume  I,  page  342)  says  that 
' '  this  [our]  small  force  was  engaged  for  five  and 
a  half  hours  with  four  and  a  half  regiments  of 
the  enemy.  *  *  The  enemy  made  three  dis- 
tinct and  well-sustained  charges,  but  were  re- 
pulsed with  heavy  loss."  These  charges  were 
made  on  breastwork  Fl.  Captain  Winthrop,  a 
gallant  officer,  led  the  charges.  The  Federal 
troops  sprang  on  to  the  breastworks,  received  a 
shower  of  shot-musketry,  twice  fell  back.  At 
the  third  charge  Winthrop  sprang  on  the  breasts 
work,  waved  his  sword,  exclaiming:  "Rally, 
boys,  rally !  one  more  rally  and  the  day  is 
ours!"     The  brave  words  had  scarcely  been  ut- 


tered when  poor  Winthrop  fell,  mortally 
wounded.  This  caused  first,  confusion,  then  a 
panic,  and  finally  a  complete  rout  for  miles. 

Whilst  this  was  going  on,  the  howitzers — as 
brave  a  body  of  men  as  ever .  wore  a  uniform — 
were  handling  their  guns,  poor  howitzers,  with 
the  utmost  coolness  and  skill.  It  looked  more 
as  if  they  were  practising  before  their  sweet- 
hearts. A  blacksmith  shop  (B)  was  directly 
within  the  range  of  their  guns,  and  General 
Magruder  stated  that  he  would  not  order  any 
one  to  go  outside  to  fire  the  shop,  as  the  chances 
were  all  against  succeeding,  yet  if  any  one  de- 
sired to  volunteer  to  do  so  he  would  accept  hiB 
services.  Several  privates  sprang  from  the 
ranks  to  offer  themselves,  but  Wyatt  got  in  ad- 
vance and  was  chosen.  We  know  his  sad  fate 
— riddled  with  bullets  even  before  he  reached 
the  shop. 

We  all  had  an  (to  me  at  least)  unexpectedly 
good  lunch  that  day  from  the  canteens  and 
haversacks  dashed  down  by  the  rapidly  flying 
Federals.  Wyatt  was  our  only  loss.  The  Fed- 
erals lost  between  five  hundred  and  a  thousand 
men.  It  was  said  that  Winthrop  was  killed  by 
the  negro  cook  attached  to  the  Orange  Guard. 

Yet,  a  battle  so  fought  and  won  against  such 
odds  is  termed  by  Butler,  in  his  "  Book,"  "  an 
affair  ' ' !  and  Davis  only  devotes  a  page  to  it. 

The  moral  effect  of  the  battle  was  electrical. 
It  stimulated  the  weak-kneed,  encouraged  the 
pessimists,  and  doubtless  operated  as  an  un- 
seen but  no  less  powerful  factor  in  the  battle  of 
Bull  Run,  which  happened  forty  days  afterward. 
The  logic  of  it  was  that  one  Southerner  was 
equal  to  four  Federals,  but  the  proportion  ran 
much  higher  in  the  average  Southern  mind. 
Philosophically  viewed,  it  turned  out  to  be  a 
misleading  star  of  destiny,  as  it  remotely  but 
certainly  became  the  cause  of  a  fearful  destruc- 
tion of  human  life,  commencing  with  Bull  Run 
and  lasting  through  nearly  four  sad  years.  As 
a  just  tribute  to  our  regiment,  the  legislature 
gave  us  the  nam  deplume  of  the  "Bethel  Regi- 
ment." 


II.— EXTRACTS    FROM    GENERAL    D.    H.    HILL'S    OFFICIAL    REPORT 

OF   THE    BATTLE. 


Sir  : — I  have  the  honor  to  report  that,  in 
obedience  to  orders  from  the  colonel  command- 
ing, I  marched,  on  the  6th  instant,  with  my 
regiment  and  four  pieces  of  Major  Randolph's 
battery,  from  York  town,  on  the  Hampton  Road, 
to  Bethel  Church,  nine  miles  from  Hampton. 


We  reached  there  after  dark  on  a  wet  night, 
and  slept  without  tents.  Early  on  the  morning 
of  the  7th,  I  made  a  reconnoissance  of  the 
ground  preparatory  to  fortifying.  I  found  a 
branch  of  Back  River  in  our  front  and  encircling 
our  right  flank.     On  our  left  was  a  dense  and 


*  From  Charleston  Daily  Courier  of  June  26,  1861.     Addressed  to  Governor  J.  W.  Ellis. 


■THE   BATTLE   OF   GREAT   'BETHEL    CHURCH. 


155 


almost  impassable  wood,  except  about  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  yards  of  old  field.  The  breadth 
of  the  road,  a  thick  wood,  and  a  narrow  culti- 
vated field  covered  our  rear.  The  nature  of 
ground  determined  me  to  make  an  enclosed 
work,  and  I  had  the  invaluable  aid  of  Lieuten- 
ant-Colonel Lee,  of  my  regiment,  in  its  plan  and 
construction.  Our  position  had  the  inherent 
defect  of  being  commanded  by  an  immense  field 
immediately  in  front  of  it,  upon  which  the 
masses  of  the  enemy  might  be  readily  deployed. 
Presuming  an  attempt  would  be  made  to  carry 
the  bridge  across  the  stream,  a  battery  was 
made  for  its  especial  protection,  and  Major 
Eandolph  placed  his  guns  so  as  to  sweep  all  the 
approaches  to  it.  The  occupation  of  two  com- 
manding eminences  beyond  the  creek  and  on 
our  right  would  have  greatly  strengthened  our 
position,  but  our  force  was  too  weak  to  admit 
of  the  occupation  of  more  than  one  of  them.  A 
battery  was  laid  out  on  it  for  one  of  Randolph's 
howitzers. 

We  had  only  twenty-five  spades,  six  axes, 
and  three  picks,  but  these  were  busily  plied  all 
day  and  night  of  the  7th,  and  all  day  on  the 
8th.     *    *     * 

On  Sunday,  the  9th,  a  fresh  supply  of  tools 
enabled  us  to  put  more  men  to  work,  and  when 
not  engaged  in  religious  duties  the  men  worked 
vigorously  on  the  intrenchments.  We  were 
aroused  at  three  o'clock  on  Monday  morning  for 
a  general  advance  upon  the  enemy,  and  marched 
three  and  a  half  miles,  when  we  learned  that 
the  foe,  in  large  force,  was  within  a  few  hun- 
dred yards  of  us.  We  fell  back  hastily  upon 
our  intrenchments.  Lieutenant-Colonel  Stew- 
art, of  the  3d  Virginia  Regiment,  having 
joined  us  with  some  one  hundred  and  eighty 
men,  was  stationed  on  the  hill  on  the  extreme 
right  beyond  the  creek,  and  Company  G  of  my 
regiment  was  also  thrown  over  the  stream  to 
protect  the  howitzer  under  Captain  Brown. 
Captain  Bridgers,  of  Company  A,  1st  North 
Carolina  Regiment,  took  post  in  the  dense  wood 
beyond  and  to  the  left  of  the  bridge.  Major 
Montague,  with  three  companies  of  his  battal- 
ion, was  ordered  up  from  the  rear  and  took 
post  on  our  right,  beginning  at  the  church  and 
extending  along  the  entire  front  on  that  side. 
This  fine  body  of  men  and  the  gallant  command 
of  Lieutenant-Colonel  Stewart  worked  with 
great  rapidity,  and  in  an  hour  had  constructed 
temporary  shelters  against  the  enemy's  fire. 
Just  at  nine  o'clock  a.  m.  the  heavy  columns  of 
the  enemy  were  seen  approaching  rapidly  and  in 


good  order,  but  when  Randolph  opened  upon 
them  at  a  quarter  past  nine  their  organization 
was  completely  broken  up.  The  enemy  replied 
promptly  with  his  artillery,  firing  briskly  and 
wildly,  and  made  an  attempt  at  deployment  on 
our  right  of  the  road,  under  cover  of  some 
houses  and  a  paling. 

They  were,  however,  promptly  driven  back 
by  our  artillery,  a  Virginia  company  (the  Life 
Guard)  ,  and  Companies  B,  C,  and  G  of  my  regi- 
ment. The  enemy  made  no  deployment  within 
musketry  range  during  the  day,  except  under 
cover  of  woods,  fences,  or  paling.  Under  cover 
of  the  trees  he  moved  a  strong  column  to 
an  old  ford  about  three-quarters  of  a  mile  below 
where  I  had  placed  a  picket  of  some  forty  men. 
Colonel  Magruder  sent  Captain  Worth's  com- 
pany, of  Montague's  command,  with  one  how- 
itzer under  Sergeant  Crane,  to  drive  back  this 
column,  which  was  done  by  a  single  shot  from 
the  howitzer  Before  this,  a  priming  wire  had 
been  broken  in  the  vent  of  the  howitzer  com- 
manded by  Captain  Brown  and  rendered  it  use- 
less. A  force,  estimated  at  fifteen  hundred, 
was  now  attempting  to  outflank  us  and  get  in 
the  rear  of  Lieutenant-Colonel  Stewart's  small 
command.  He  was  accordingly  directed  to  fall 
back,  and  the  whole  of  our  advance  troops  were 
withdrawn.  At  this  critical  moment  I  directed 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Lee  to  call  Captain  Bridgers 
out  of  the  swamp  and  order  him  to  occupy  the 
nearest  advanced  work,  and  I  ordered  Captain 
Ross's  Company  C,  1st  Regiment,  North  Carolina 
Volunteers,  to  the  support  of  Lieutenant-Colo- 
nel Stewart.  These  two  captains,  with  their 
companies,  crossed  over  to  Randolph's  battery 
under  a  most  heavy  fire,  in  the  most  gallant 
manner. 

As  Lieutenant-Colonel  Stewart  had  with- 
drawn, Captain  Ross  was  detained  at  the  church 
near  Randolph's  battery.  Captain  Bridgers, 
however,  crossed  over,  and  drove  the  Zouaves 
out  of  the  advanced  howitzer  battery  and  re- 
occupied  it.  It  is  impossible  to  over-estimate 
this  service.  It  decided  the  action  in  our  favor. 
In  obedience  to  orders  from  Colonel  Magruder, 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Stewart  rushed  back,  and  in 
spite  of  the  presence  of  a  foe  ten  times  his  supe- 
rior in  numbers,  resumed  in  the  most  heroic 
manner  possession  of  his  intrenchments.  A 
fresh  howitzer  was  carried  across  and  placed  in 
the  battery,  and  Captain  Avery,  of  Company  G, 
was  directed  to  defend  it  at  all  hazards.  We 
were  now  as  secure  as  at  the  beginning  of  the 
fight,  and  as  yet  had  no  man  killed.     The  ene- 


156 


"BLUE    zAND     GRAY. 


my,  finding  himself  foiled  on  our  right  flank, 
next  made  his  final  demonstration  on  our  left. 
A  strong  column,  supposed  to  consist  of  volun- 
teers from  different  regiments,  and  under  com- 
mand of  Captain  Winthrop,  aid-de-camp  to 
General  Butler,  crossed  over  the  creek  and  ap- 
peared at  the  angle  on  our  left.  Those  in  ad- 
vance had  put  on  our  distinctive  badge  of  a 
white  band  around  the  cap,  and  they  cried  out 
repeatedly,  "Don't  fire  !"  This  ruse  was  prac- 
tised to  enable  the  whole  column  to  get  over  the 
creek  and  form  in  good  order.  They  now  began 
to  cheer  most  lustily,  thinking  that  our  work 
was  open  at  the  gorge  and  that  they  could  get 
in  by  a  sudden  rush.  Companies  B  and  C, 
however,  soon  dispelled  the  illusion  by  a  cool, 
deliberate,  and  well-directed  fire.  Colonel  Ma- 
gruder  sent  over  portions  of  G-,  C,  and  N  Com- 
panies of  my  regiment  to  our  support.  And 
now  began  as  cool  firing  on  our  side  as  was  ever 
witnessed.  , 

The  three  field  officers  of  the  regiment  were 
present,  and  but  few  shots  were  fired  without 
their  permission,  the  men  repeatedly  saying, 
'•  May  I  fire  ?  I  think  I  can  bring  him."  They 
were  all  in  high  glee  and  seemed  to  enjoy  it  as 
much  as  boys  do  rabbit  shooting.  Captain  Win- 
throp, while  most  gallantly  urging  on  his  men, 
was  shot  through  the  heart,  when  all  rushed 
back  with  the  utmost  precipitation.  The  fight 
at  the  angle  lasted  but  twenty  minutes  ;  it  com- 
pletely discouraged  the  enemy  and  he  made  no 
further  effort  at  assault.  The  house  in  front, 
which  had  served  as  a  hiding-place  for  the  en- 
emy, was  now  fired  by  a  shell  from  a  howitzer, 
and  the  out-houses  and  paling  were  soon  in  a 
blaze.  As  all  shelter  was  now  taken  from  him, 
the  enemy  called  in  his  troops  and  started  back 
for  Hampton.  As  he  had  left  sharp-shooters 
behind  him  in  the  woods  on  our  left,, the  dragoons 
could  not  advance  until  Captain  Hoke,  of  Com- 


pany K,  1st  Eegiment,  North  Carolina  Volun- 
teers, had  thoroughly  explored  them.  When  he 
gave  assurance  of  the  wood  being  clear,  Captain 
Douthatt,  with  some  one  hundred  dragoons, 
pursued.     *     *     * 

There  were  not  quite  eight  hundred  of  my 
regiment  engaged  in  the  fight,  and  not  one-half 
of  these  drew  a  trigger  during  the  fight.  All 
remained  manfully  at  the  post  assigned,  and  not 
a  man  in  the  regiment  behaved  badly.  The 
companies  not  engaged  were  as  much  exposed 
and  rendered  equal  service  with  those  partici- 
pating in  the  fight.  They  deserve  equally  the 
thanks  of  the  country.  In  fact,  it  is  the  most 
trying  ordeal  to  which  soldiers  can  be  subjected 
to  receive  a  fire  which  their  orders  forbid  them 
to  return.  Had  a  single  company  left  its 
post,  our  works  would  have  been  exposed, 
and  the  constancy  and  discipline  of  the  unen- 
gaged companies  cannot  be  too  highly  com- 
mended. 

A  detachment  of  fifteen  cadets  from  North 
Carolina  Military  Institute  defended  the  howit- 
zer under  Lieutenant  Hudnal,  and  acted  with 
great  coolness  and  determination.     *     *     * 

Permit  me,  in  conclusion,  to  pay  a  well-de- 
served compliment  to  the  1st  Eegiment,  North 
Carolina  Volunteers.  Their  patience  under 
trial,  perseverance  under  toil,  and  courage  under 
fire  have  seldom  been  surpassed  by  veteran 
troops.  After  working  night  and  day,  and 
sometimes  without  tents  and  cooking  utensils,  a 
murmur  has  never  escaped  them  to  my  know- 
ledge. They  have  done  a  large  portion  of  the 
work  on  the  intrenchments  at  Yorktown,  as 
well  as  those  at  Bethel.  Had  all  the  regiments 
in  the  field  worked  with  the  same  spirit  there 
would  not  be  an  assailable  point  in  Virginia. 
After  the  battle  they  shook  hands  affectionately 
with  the  spades,  calling  them  clever  fellows  and 
good  friends. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  N.C.  AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


00032769914 

FOR  USE  ONLY  IN 
THE  NORTH  CAROLINA  COLLECTION 


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}  \ 


